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Residents, advocates press Sunnyvale to strengthen Safe Routes to School; council asks staff for study session
Summary
Multiple public commenters and council members urged the city to revamp the Safe Routes to School program, recommending clearer metrics, relocation of the program and additional staffing; council asked staff to return with a study session on program scope and metrics.
Several parents, nonprofit leaders and commission representatives told Sunnyvale's council on May 19 they want a stronger, better-resourced Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program that emphasizes measurable goals and dedicated transportation expertise.
During public comment, Charlene Liu, a longtime resident, urged the council to move Safe Routes to School out of the Department of Public Safety and into Transportation. Liu told council the program needs explicit metrics and regular travel tallies with school districts, and she recommended hiring multiple dedicated staff to run the program and deepen school partnerships.
Representatives from the Sustainability Commission (Jeff Navhan) and community groups (Kevin Jackson of Sunnyvale Safe Streets; Crystal Wickham, remote) also voiced support for a redesign that includes measurable goals, stakeholder engagement and leadership with traffic-engineering expertise. Several commenters cited neighboring cities that house SRTS in transportation and employ transportation engineers to lead the work.
Public Safety Chief Dan Pistore, who oversees the city's existing SRTS coordinator, described the program's current structure in the Department of Public Safety and the department's role in education, crossing guard coordination and enforcement. He told council the city runs 48 crossing guards at 47 locations for 18 schools and that some neighboring cities have different staffing models. Pistore and other staff said infrastructure changes remain the responsibility of Public Works and that successful SRTS work mixes education, enforcement and infrastructure.
Council members said the program needs clearer performance measures and broader outreach. Several councilors asked staff to return with a focused study session to define metrics, goals and the program's organizational home. Vice Mayor Mellinger and others explicitly asked for a study session that would explore whether SRTS should be placed in Transportation, how to include private schools, and how to ensure a school participation target for walking and biking counts.
What the council asked for: staff will prepare materials for a study session to more thoroughly define SRTS metrics, outline options for program leadership and identify steps for better school and private-school outreach. The council's motion on the larger budget package included direction that SRTS work be refined and discussed in that study session.
Why it matters: Safe Routes programs influence daily travel safety for schoolchildren, can reduce vehicle trips and support climate and equity goals; council members emphasized the need for measurable objectives and operational clarity before adding more resources.
